Ellie Carpenter had the best possible start to her Chelsea career, starring as the Blues picked up a 2-1 victory over title rivals Manchester City.
Elsewhere, players made their debuts across England and Germany as the leagues got underway for the season, and Daniela Galic picked up an assist in Sweden.
Read our review of all the action below.
England
Chelsea began their title defence in the best possible fashion, defeating title rivals Manchester City 2-1. Aggie Beever-Jones and Maika Hamano scored goals either side of half-time and, despite more than double the shots of the home side, City were unable to rescue a point. Ellie Carpenter was highly impressive in her Chelsea debut, picking up an assist and being named Player of the Match in her WSL debut, while Sam Kerr was an unused substitute - manager Sonia Bompastor clarifying that it was only the unique match situation that saw her remain on the bench. Mary Fowler was unavailable for Manchester City as she continues her ACL rehabilitation.
European champions Arsenal began their domestic campaign with a 4-1 victory over newly promoted London City Lionesses. Olivia Smith scored on her club debut before Chloe Kelly, Stina Blackstenius, and Frida Maanum made sure of the result. Steph Catley started and played the full match for the Gunners, also picking up the assist on Smith's goal, while Caitlin Foord was a second-half substitute, and Kyra Cooney-Cross remained on the bench. Alanna Kennedy started in defence for the Lionesses, making her debut for the club in their inaugural game in the WSL.
Manchester United made a statement in their first game of the season, defeating Leicester City 4-0. Melvine Malard scored a brace late in the second half after goals from Ella Toone and Elisabeth Terland gave them the lead in the first. Emily van Egmond started and played the full match in her Leicester City debut.
Everton shocked Liverpool in the Merseyside Derby, defeating their rivals 4-1 at Anfield. Ornella Vignola stole the headlines with a hat-trick on her debut. Clare Wheeler was a half-time substitute for the Blues as they ran away with the match.
Tottenham Hotspur gained bragging rights in the London Derby, defeating West Ham 1-0. Bethany England’s second-half penalty was enough to get Spurs over the line in a closely contested battle. Clare Hunt started in played the full match for Spurs, picking up her first clean sheet of the season alongside new centre-back partner Toko Koga. Katrina Gorry played the full game for the Hammers, while Charli Grant was a late substitute for Tottenham.
Sweden
Vittsjö GIK defeated Rosengård 3-2 in an exciting game that sees them nine points clear of the relegation zone. Anna Sofie Rewucha scored a first-half brace to help her side over the line. Daniela Galic started and picked up an assist to help her side to the vital victory.
AIK Fotboll were narrowly defeated 1-0 by Piteå. Saga Swedman’s second-half strike was all that separated the two teams. Jada Whyman started in goals for AIK.
Malmö FF were narrowly defeated 2-1 by Hammarby in a massive title six-pointer. Hammarby raced to a two-goal lead and was able to hold on despite withstanding significant Malmö pressure. Courtney Nevin started and played the full match for Malmö.
Kristianstads DFF picked up a 1-1 draw against third-place BK Häcken. Alice Engér scored early in the first half before Carly Wickenheiser equalised for Häcken. Amy Sayer and Remy Siemsen both started for Kristianstads, with Siemsen withdrawn in the second half.
United States
The Portland Thorns came from behind to defeat Racing Louisville 2-1. Julie Dufour equalised for the Thorns in the first half before an own goal gave them the lead in the final minute of regulation time. It was an important win for the Thorns who ended the round in fourth. Mackenzie Arnold and Kaitlyn Torpey both started for Portland.
Late drama saw the North Carolina Courage draw 1-1 with the Utah Royals. Jaedyn Shaw scored a penalty in the 89th minute for what seemed like the winner, before the Royals’ Paige Monaghan scored in stoppage time to rescue a point. It was a disappointing result for the Courage, who now face an uphill battle to make the playoffs. Cortnee Vine started for North Carolina on the wing.
Germany
Frauen-Bundesliga
Eintracht Frankfurt got off to a winning start in the Frauen-Bundesliga, defeating SGS Essen 5-0. The goals were shared as Frankfurt made a statement in their opening match. Hayley Raso made her debut for the club as a second-half substitute.
VfL Wolfsburg gave up a two-goal advantage to draw 3-3 with Hamburger SV. It was a dramatic finish to the game with a 97th-minute goal for Svea Stoldt rescuing a point for Hamburger. Sharn Freier was not in the matchday squad, and did not feature for Wolfsburg II.
Jamilla Rankin’s TSG Hoffenheim are yet to play their first game, with their season kicking off against Carl Zeiss Jena on Tuesday, 2am AEST.
2.Frauen-Bundesliga
SC Sand suffered their first defeat of the season, falling 5-1 to VfL Bochum. There were five different goal scorers for Bochum in a statement game for the home side. Alana Murphy made her debut for Sand coming off the bench in the second half.
France
Lyon kicked off their season with a 3-1 victory over Olympique Marseille. Ada Hegerberg, Liana Joseph and young star Lily Yohannes were the goal scorers for the French Champions. Teagan Micah was not named in the matchday squad.
Italy
Wini Heatley's AS Roma continued their fine form in the Serie A Women’s Cup, defeating AC Milan 1-0 and making it back-to-back victories in the Women's Cup. Heatley started and played the full match, with Giulia Galli's goal in the 79th minute the difference between the two sides.
Jess Nash and Jacynta Galabadaarachchi's U.S. Sassuolo Calcio snatched a late draw with Ternana in their second game of the Serie A Women’s Cup. Nash and Galabadaarachchi both started for Sassuolo.
Alex Chidiac's FC Como also recorded a 1-1 draw in their Serie A Women’s Cup game, unable to find the winner against Genoa. Chidiac did not appear in the matchday squad.
Mexico
Emily Gielnik's CF Monterrey went down 4-0 to UANL Tigres. A heavy weather delay to the game saw the start of the second half delayed, with Rayadas trailing going into the break 4-0 down, and unable to turn around the result in the second half.
Canada
Calgary Wild FC were comprehensively defeated by Vancouver Rise 6-0. Latifah Abdu scored a brace as Vancouver hit their opponents for six. Kahli Johnson remains unavailable for Calgary.
